Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 1 Makes $24 Million At Midnight Screenings

It's no surprise to hear that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is a box office juggernaut, but even industry insiders are surprised today at just how much cash the thing has brought in already.The movie brought in $24 million from midnight screenings last night, a record for the franchise that's only beaten by the two most recent Twilight films.

Deathly Hallows is on track, according to the numbers at Warner Bros., to make as much as $135 this weekend, which would just about tie it for the fourth-best opening weekend, alongside Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (the record is still held by The Dark Knight, with $158 million). And all of these numbers put Deathly Hallows well past the last installment, Half-Blood Prince, which made $22 million from midnight screenings but had one of the franchise's lowest opening weekends at just $77 million.